


Opal, Sapphire, Ruby, and STEVEN!: Rose's Scabbard

by TheOneAndOnly1993



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Drama, F/F, Hurt/Comfort, Some Humor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-17
Updated: 2016-09-17
Packaged: 2018-08-15 11:37:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,331
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8054794
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheOneAndOnly1993/pseuds/TheOneAndOnly1993
Summary: (Opal AU) Another day, another Gem ruin to clear of old weaponry. That is until the Crystal Gems stumble upon a relic of Opal's past, and Steven's heritage.





	Opal, Sapphire, Ruby, and STEVEN!: Rose's Scabbard

**This is based off iamconstantine's amazing fic, 'Opal, Sapphire, Ruby, and STEVEN!', wherein as the title suggests, it's an AU where Opal is the permafusion rather than Garnet.**

**If you wrote it off as just another character swap, I'd give it a look. It follows the episodes, but they all have drastic changes to the plots to better suit the characters, and sometimes it merges two or even three stories/setups into a single adventure, such as Lars and the Cool Kids combined with Beach Party. It isn't just the same dialogue parroted by the other Gems, they actually have their own personalities and dynamics with Steven. It's really cute; Steven has a little brother/big sister relationship with Ruby and Sapphire, and Opal is a shy motherly type who loves eating and is oftentimes fairly forgetful.**

**With the author's permission, I was allowed to use the world this fic built to create my own version of 'Rose's Scabbard.' I hope you all enjoy.**

* * *

_**The Scabbard** _

_TheOneAndOnly1993_

* * *

An airy moan flowed through the gloomy caverns. The Earth itself slept soundly, drawing its long breaths through the maze of catacombs the Crystal Gems traversed. They were perfectly carved, the stone enclosing them smooth as glass. Along either side of the walls, various gemstones were organized in a pattern, like markings. These were Earth gems, not of the same cut as the protectors of the planet itself. But the power of each stone, what their image represented, remained strong as ever.

The caverns were silent as the grave, an apt description considering where they were.

"This place is making me sad," Steven mumbled.

Opal cast a sympathetic smile down at the boy, who rode on the back of his pet Lion. "It's okay, Steven." Gentle as it was, her voice still projected a generous boom in the cavern. "All of the Gems here are at peace, bubbled and buried beneath the ground where they came from."

"It's just really sad," he said. "There's so many of them, shattered forever. Gems shouldn't have to fight each other."

"No, they shouldn't," Sapphire agreed. She gave her signature "Hm," and a moment later said, "I'm sorry, Steven. I thought it would be appropriate to bring you here and expose you to an important part of Gem history. I saw there was a chance you might appreciate it, and disregarded the other possibilities in my excitement... I'm sorry."

She was as monotone as ever in her inflection, but Steven was familiar enough with Sapphire's way of speaking to hear the regret tainting her words. He looked down from his perch, and gave the Gem gliding along with Opal's long strides a reassuring smile. "Don't be sorry, Sapphire. It is making me sad, but I understand why this place is so important to you guys." He considered his next words carefully. "Thanks for showing me this."

She kept her mouth a neutral line, though a dark blue light did gather in Sapphire's cheeks. "You're welcome, Steven. Perhaps I will tell you more about these battles when you're a little older."

Ruby came jogging round the bend a second later, hauling up to her eyeballs a stockpile of swords, axes, flails and daggers and gauntlets. "Here!" she demanded, shoving them towards Opal. The towering Gem gingerly took the pile in two hand fulls and tucked it all beneath one of her armpits. Ruby then turned heel and went jogging off back the way she came.

Steven stared blankly down the passage before waving his hand after her. "Bye, Ruby!" He turned to Opal, whom picked through each weapon, analyzing them with a distant look in her eye. "Is that all of them?"

Sapphire continued gazing down where her teammate had run off. "Evidently not."

Opal finally broke from her trance and dropped the hand in front of her face clutching a dagger, letting out a sad sigh. "I do wish we didn't have to disturb this place."

"As do I. But Ruby is correct; with Homeworld trying to reconnect with Earth, these weapons are better left safely locked away in the temple where no one can get them."

"Do you think I can keep one?" Steven asked excitedly.

Both Gems replied unanimously.

"Absolutely-"

"Absolutely!"

Sapphire shot a cold glare towards Opal, who shrugged haplessly. The latter turned her attention back to Steven, one set of hands on her hips and the other crossed over her chest. "Why don't you go with Ruby and see if she can help you pick one? You'll need something cool to go with that shield of yours." She jostled the payload still nestled in the crook of her arm. "Something more elegant than these oldies."

Steven's eyes shone like twin stars. "Yes, I love you Opal! Lion!" He ran his fingers through the plush mane of his pet. "Help find a weapon worthy of Steven Quartz Uni-AUGH!"

Lion took off in a dash, flinging Steven off of him and barreling down the passageway where Ruby had gone. Steven was caught safely in the extra set of arms of Opal. She hugged him close. "You should really work on getting him under control," she tutted.

"I am! He's doing what I ask..."

Very faintly, down the passage, they heard the faintest roar of anger.

"We should save him from Ruby though."

Without wasting any time, Opal scooped up Steven and Sapphire in two of her free hands and paced down the hall with her long legs. She followed the passageway to a low threshold, which she ducked through and was met with a chamber illuminated brilliantly by flames seething off of Ruby's boots. Weapons were scattered all around, and the red Gem was shaking her fists with hardly-contained rage at the pink feline sifting around at an alcove at the end of the tomb.

"Stupid furball! Watch where you're going!" Lion continued pawing at whatever he found more interesting than the tiny Gem ready to explode behind him. "AND GET OUT OF THERE!"

Steven came up beside her. "Hey, Ruby!"

"STEVEN-!" Ruby whirled on him, but caught herself just short of another outburst. She breathed deep, and released a heavy sigh, wisps of black smoke rising off her head. "You need to train that thing, soldier. One day, you're gonna be riding him into battle. And when that day comes, I don't wanna to be focusing all my energy, _and rage,_ _ON THAT FLUFFY HOT MESS!"_

Steven skipped over to his pet, who continued to dig. "He's not a hot mess!" He lied his cheek against the beast's mane and started stroking it lovingly. "He's just a big ole goofball."

"He'll be a hot mess soon if he runs me over again," Ruby grumbled.

Suddenly, Lion stopped digging and brought his head up, something clearly stuck in his mouth.

Opal, still having to crouch in the low ceiling of the chamber, leaned to one side trying to get a better look. "What on Earth does he have in his-OH MY STARS!" Lion had turned his head to the group, his eyes wide and innocent as he clutched in his maw a long, pink casing. In her shock, Opal dropped the weapons and all four of her fists began trembling with excitement. "H'oh my gosh, oh this is a miracle!" she gushed.

"Why? What is it?" asked Steven.

"This? Steven, don't you see the rose?! It's your mother's! It's the scabbard to her legendary sword!"

"Woah, really?!" Just the words "legendary" and "sword" struck a chord with Steven's young mind. But it took a moment for the implications to settle before true wonder gripped him.

Opal proceeded to crabwalk closer to the group alongside Sapphire. Her eyes glimmered as she beheld the scabbard, before suddenly clouding with nostalgia. "I... _remember_."

Four sets of eyes, yes, even Lion, gazed upwards to her. Opal had her eyes shut gently, a set of hands clasped over the gem on her chest. She was humming. "That symbol, I remember so much..." Steven cast his gaze down to the rose drawing etched into the scabbard, half-ensnared in Lion's bite.

Meanwhile, Opal continued to monologue with all the sentiment in her heart.

"Rose Quartz made us... me... believe we were perfect, the way we were. That we had the power to break the mold of our design, we need only to realize it. So we made our stand! And she led us to victory, her sword raised high..." her cheeks darkened, "...as did I beside her. Victory was uncertain, as was faith in ourselves. But we stood by your mother, Steven. And since that day, we've lived in freedom..." She looked down at her hands, all four of them. "...Freedom to do whatever we pleased. To live the way _we_ wanted. Your mother, heh" a soft laugh, and Opal's brilliant blue eyes matched with Steven's, "she saved us, Steven."

Both Ruby and Sapphire bowed their heads respectfully. Steven wanted to join them, but he found himself frozen in Opal's giant, intense gaze, and he suddenly felt so, so small. "Wow," was all he could squeak, blinking back tears. He never heard Opal speak so fervently about something before, not relating to food that is.

"Well I'll be," said Ruby, walking up beside him, hands on her hips. "It has been a _ges_ since I've seen this. Been wondering where she put it."

Steven was still dazzled by his realization. He asked, as his eyes twinkled, "So Mom... was a warrior?"

"Only the best there ever was," said Ruby. Her voice was low and nostalgic. "Why, the way she wielded that sword... your mother was a born leader, Steven."

 _A born leader._ Steven clenched the fabric resting against his gemstone. "How good of a fighter was she?" he ventured to ask. His voice was light and airy.

"The _best_ I've ever seen." Ruby then snickered, a blush blooming across her cheeks. "She's kinda my role model, actually."

Steven gasped loud. "And you're kinda like mine!"

The red Gem's blush only intensified, and she looked away. "Heh, yeah..."

Steven turned to Lion and gave him a scratch on the muzzle. "Good find, Lion. You deserve a month's worth of belly rubs." The big cat grumbled appreciatively. "Though I wonder what this is doing way down here."

Behind him, the three Crystal Gems froze and drew their gazes on the alcove behind Lion. A bright pink diamond was nestled in the stone, which Ruby tactically shielded with her person, bearing a big, toothy smile.

Steven seemed completely oblivious to the cover-up, still entranced by the massive scabbard. By patting his muzzle twice, Lion let it drop at Steven's feet, spit-covered and puffing up dirt on impact. The boy was about to pick it up when a large grey hand swooped in from over his shoulder and snatched it. Steven followed it to where Opal was cleaning it off with the curtain of fabric that hung from her top, grumbling all the while. "Filthy, filthy..." she fretted. Her strokes slowed until they halted completely, and Opal once again found herself frozen in the image of the thorned rose.

"I think we're done here for now," said Sapphire.

Opal snapped out of her thoughts. "Oh, yes! Everyone, grab what you can. We'll come back for the rest later." She tucked the scabbard beneath her arm and proceeded to hurriedly assist Ruby in picking up the discarded weapons.

All the while Steven had his gaze trained on his family heirloom, and behind him, Lion did as well, intense as ever.

* * *

As soon as the Crystal Gems warped back into Steven's home, Ruby opened her arms and allowed her entire payload to go crashing clangorously to the ground.

"Really?" muttered Sapphire.

Opal stared for a moment, then smiled happily and copied the red Gem, followed soon after by Steven. Sapphire cringed ever so slightly at the ensuing clamor of warfare tumbling all around her.

Once silence fell, the blue Gem shivered.

"Alright, let's sort these out!" said Ruby. She pointed to a set of invisible spaces on the wood floor beneath the warp pad. "Blades will go in one pile, blunt in another, and miscellaneous off to the side right here."

The Crystal Gems sat down and got to work. Opal sorted the fastest, she only needed to glance at a weapon before throwing it into its respective pile, and she did this with all four arms working.

At one point Steven, laying back against a napping Lion, held up an ax. "Hey Ruby, what about this? Is it blunt, or blade?"

"Er..." Ruby began to sweat, and before the lull in productivity could continue any longer she snatched the ax up and placed it between both piles. Both she and Steven exchanged glances before sputtering into giggles.

The work resumed, and the Crystal Gems toiled in comfortable silence, occasionally broken up by Steven humming a tune, which was joined in by Sapphire, and then Opal, before Ruby finally relented and soon they were all in harmony.

It didn't stop until they reached the bottom of the pile, where Rose's bright scabbard lied. Opal was about to reach for it, then drew the hand back for a moment, and then picked it up anyway. Steven watched her gaze upon it one last time, before he was startled to find her handing it to him.

"Here you go."

Steven looked at it, hesitant, his eyes glittering. Opal smiled reassuringly and nudged it closer to him. Steven smiled gratefully, and then eagerly took the massive item with both hands. "Thanks, Opal!"

"You're welcome!" she chuckled, ruffling his hair playfully. "It is your family's, after all."

The boy nodded after jumping to his feet. "Yeah! And if anyone tries to take it from me, I'll just bop 'em in the face with it!"

"Thatta boy!" cheered Ruby.

Opal simply laughed. "Oh Steven, you'll never do any real damage with just the scabbard. You'll need..." Her face fell, as did Steven's when he saw it. "Well, you'll need her sword. But it seems that I've forgotten where it is..." Opal then hugged herself, shame evident on her face as she gazed off to the side.

Steven's heart ached. He walked over to the Gem and placed a hand on her upper-upper arm - he was still too short to reach her shoulder, even while she sat crisscross. "I'm sure _you_ didn't lose it," he assured her. "Maybe there's some place my Mom put it. Someplace secret."

At the mention of the word, it was like a switch was flicked in Opal's head. Her face brightened and she whipped around to Steven, a smile several feet wide spread across her plump lips. She shot up. "Steven that's- _OW!_ " Her head banged against the ceiling. Pieces of sheet-rock sprinkled down as she squatted down to meet him. "Steven, that's it!"

"What, you remembered?!"

Opal opened her mouth to begin blabbering away, but took sudden pause - across from them, with the three weapon piles between them, Ruby was harassing Sapphire with a puny little butter knife they had founded in the catacombs. Her poking with its dulled tip lasted only about half a second before it was promptly Gem-smacked out of her hand and landed perfectly in the "blade" pile.

"Um, do you two have this? I want to take Steven out for a minute."

Ruby waved her off. "Yeah, yeah. We're fine!"

Sapphire put a hand to her chin, deep in thought. Whatever she was seeing, it wasn't enough to hold the pair up, and she allowed a nod.

Opal smiled gratefully and then stood up, her lower hands swooping down and snatching Steven from his spot beside Lion. The boy giggled as he was carried by the tall Gem to the deck outside. She plunked his butt on the railing, and two more hands grabbed him by the shoulders. "Steven, I think I have a hunch to where your mother's sword may be. But we have to play the Quiet Game. Can you do that?"

"I LOVE THE QUIET GAME!"

Opal laughed. "Good. Because Ruby and Sapphire," she spoke low, as if the aforementioned Gems were eavesdropping, "they can't know about this place."

Steven rose a brow. "Why not? Is it something bad?"

"Goodness, no! But it's a _secret_ , a secret your mother shared with me and only me."

"Why?"

"That," Opal chuckled in a way Steven could only describe as _cocky,_ "is something I'll tell you on the way there."

* * *

This wasn't a fun adventure like Steven hoped. In fact, when Opal told him what they were in for as they were warping in, he was quite dreading it. Though Opal didn't seem to mind carrying him in a sling on her back as she scaled the steep cliff-face, blabbing all the while about his mother.

"I was a very different Gem after the war, Steven! I was almost lost in a way. But your mother helped guide me through those first couple years."

"Did you know her before the war?"

"Oh for sure! Did you know I was her confidant?"

"Her what?"

"Her lieutenant, Steven! I was Rose Quartz's second in command! All her secrets, all her battle plans, she told me and only _me,_ hee-hee!" Opal laughed giddily some more.

Steven smiled, hearing her so joyful. "It sounds like you were very close to my Mom!" he remarked.

"No Gem was closer than the two of us, at least for a time! In fact, I was the first to follow her when she decided to fight for planet Earth. The Enemy never even _heard_ of something like me before! Why, they actually _feared_ me back then! Can you believe that?" Opal used two hands and her powerful legs to catapult herself further up the cliff, where she then landed on and kicked off a jutting rock, before grabbing and looping round a twisting tree that grey from the face of the cliff, launching herself up to an entrance hidden further up.

Steven's hair was blown back, and his eyes wild with energy. "No, I can't!" was his belated reply.

Opal straightened up and unclasped him from her sling. She hummed. "I suppose I was _much_ smaller back then. Well... in a sense." She shook her head. "Come on Steven! This way."

The pair traversed deeper into the cavern, the ground beneath their feet eventually giving way to ankle-deep water. "So what is this place?" asked Steven, speed walking a little to keep up with Opal's long, water-sloshing strides.

"Back during the war, your mother had this sanctuary built so she could have a secure hiding spot to ready herself for battle. I was the only other Gem to know about it!"

"Yeah, I heard!" Steven sounded positive as ever, but Opal caught that she was repeating herself and blushed lightly, though the boy didn't see from down below. "But how come Mom never told Ruby or Sapphire about it? Didn't she trust them?"

Opal was aghast. "With her life, Steven! But having secrets is always the mark of a great leader!"

"It is?"

"Of course! Knowing just what information to tell your followers, and which pieces to keep for yourself? It takes a certain mind to make those kinds of decisions, to place your faith in just the right Gem, the one that you trust with your life...!" Opal caught herself, her booming voice echoing in the vastness of the chamber they were entering.

Steven meanwhile soaked in her words, considering what Opal had told him. _"Having secrets is always the mark of a great leader."_ He felt warmth blossoming in his belly. "Do _you_ have any secrets?" he asked in a cheeky voice.

The taller Gem replied in just as silly a voice, "Oh, I have _many_ , little one." The duo chuckled as they stepped up the platform. As soon as they did, a small column rose from the center, shaped like a hand with a rose on the palm. The pair approached it. "Welcome, Steven," Opal laid a hand over the column, "to the armory of Rose Quartz!" Several more columns rose up around them, casting out in a magnetic field sets of axes, swords, and an array of weapons, laser light cannons, suits of armor, and a number of personal affections that Steven could not place by appearance alone. He turned to Opal, who gave a bow. "Your heritage."

"This... is all mine?"

Opal nodded. "You are Rose's son! It's yours by right."

"Neato!" Steven suddenly froze, placing a hand to his chin and thinking hard. "It's gonna be a pain to climb up here whenever I wanna get something."

"Well, that shouldn't be too big of a problem, Steven. I'd be more than willing to carry you up here whenever you-"

"I'll just bring Lion here and store everything inside his mane! Big boy's certainly got the room for it."

It took a few seconds for what he said to register. "'Inside his mane'? Steven, what does that mean?"

"Oh, there's like this whole other world inside Lion's mane, it's totally crazy! I can't breathe in there though, so I gotta be quick. He already had a bunch of Mom's old stuff in there."

"The lion? ...Rose's old things? Wha-?" Opal reared back, face contorted in what looked like... like...

Steven had never seen such a look on someone before. Only once during a _Lonely Blade_ movie, when Lonely Blade's brother was betrayed by his own master.

His face furrowed with worry. "Opal?"

As soon as he said that, a suddenly look of alertness shot across Opal's face. "Wait a second, Steven... you said you saw some of Rose's things inside Lion? Like what? I-If you don't mind me asking."

Steven smiled good-naturedly. "Oh, just a chest, one of Dad's band shirts, a flag, oh! And a big pink-" The boy stood perfectly still, his face frozen in perpetual mid-sentence.

Opal looked to him worriedly. "Steven?" She waved a hand down in front of his face, but to no effect.

She was ready to pick him up when he came back abruptly with an increasingly loud yell. " _Weeee need to go back hoooome!"_

* * *

"Bum-bada-da! I've acquired the Rose Quartz sword!"

None of the Gems laughed at his joke. All eyes were trained on Lion, wide and stricken. Except for Sapphire, though her lips were parted slightly, so it was like her eye was widened.

Steven's enthusiasm fell, as did the saber in his hands. "Guys?"

Sapphire was the first to reply, wherein the most notable thing about her body language was that her hands were clenched into fists, rather than folded over her front like usual. "I honestly saw that this was a possibility back before you left. But I wrote it off as something just... _impossible_ to actually happen."

"What was Rose's sword doing in Lion's mane?" Opal wondered aloud, seemingly forgetting that Steven had kept this a secret from her.

Seemingly.

"Steven!" Her cool blue eyes snapped towards Steven, wrought with... worry? Or hurt? They made Steven flinch either way. "Steven, what is this?"

The boy shrugged, sweat beginning to gather at his brow. "I dunno! Lion just showed me this one day. A whole bunch of Mom's stuff is in there, it's where I found Lapis even!"

Opal's expression suddenly flared. "And...! You..." then softened, "didn't tell us?"

"I...! Uh..." Steven felt guilty again; this was just like the time with Lapis! And he couldn't bear to have Opal disappointed in him _again._ "Well, I dunno, I didn't think!"

"Steven this is kinda serious," said Ruby. Her expression wasn't angry, not even stern. Just confused like the rest of them. "I mean, this is your mother's stuff, inside a big pink _thing_ that just followed us home one day. You'd think this is something you should've told us?"

"I-Well, uh..." Steven shook his head. "It's not like anything bad is in there! I just thought that since Lion's my pet, and this was my Mom's stuff..." His expression deteriorated when he saw the disappointment in Opal's face, wherein genius suddenly struck Steven in the back of the head. "It's just, you told me all great leaders have secrets, Opal!"

"Steven!" The Gem placed a hand to her brow. "You-! You're not a leader! You're too young!"

"But I have Mom's Gem! I should start learning how to be one, you guys need her! You _want_ her!"

"Woah, Steven, now hold up-" Ruby began, but was cut off.

"You may have her Gem, but you are _not_ ready to be a leader," Opal pressed, her voice fighting between calm and looming-severity. Yet immediately she flinched on realizing what she said. "Oh, Steven, I'm so sorry... Rose..." She started sniffling, clasping a hand over her eyes and tears began to flow down them. "Please, Rose, don't let this be real... _Don't_..."

The three smaller Gems gazed up at their leader with wide, worried eyes. Sapphire walked over to place her hand upon Opal's thigh. "Opal, please relax."

"I... _CAN'T!"_ Her voice boomed, and Steven shrunk back. Sapphire withdrew her hand as if she were touching a hot stove. Ruby protectively stood in front of Steven, as though Opal would even _dream_ of hurting Steven. But the fear was still there, and besides, none of them have ever seen her like _this._

"How could you all be so calm about this?" Opal demanded. "This, This weirdo lion has all of Rose's stuff! How did he get them?"

"We don't know, Opal. Perhaps Rose created him for Steven. Perhaps that's why he followed us home that day. It isn't our business to know all of Rose's doings."

"Yes it is, it's my business! IT HAS TO BE!" Tears flowed freely down Opal's face.

"Opal, calm down. Your voice is shaking the house."

Steven was startled - he had never seen his guardian this shaken before. He tried calming her, forcing a reassuring smile. "Maybe Mom was just trying to protect you, like everyone else?"

"Steven, SHUSH! You don't know what you're talking about!"

 _"OPAL!"_ Ruby screeched, aghast.

"You don't yell at Steven," said Sapphire.

Opal ignored them all. "This _Lion_ ," she gestured to the pink feline, whom stared blankly at the shaking hand before him, while two more clutched the sides of her face, "it just, it _can't_ be Rose's! Nothing about this-It doesn't-!"

Steven shrunk underneath the woman's imposing form. He had never been scared of _Opal_ before. "S-She probably wanted me to have something of her's, like a memory capsule! Maybe it wasn't like a _secret,_ but more of a nice surprise for me! I mean," he frantically counted off three fingers, "it _was_ almost my birthday when we first met Lion!"

"Opal, don't say anyth-" Sapphire's warning was cut off, as Opal forgot to watch her mouth, and she forgot who she was speaking to.

"STEVEN, _BE QUIET!_ Stop, just stop acting like you know your mother, because _you DON'T!"_

The house rattled under the boom of Opal's yell, and two of the three smaller Gems stood protectively before the third.

Ruby was quick to recover from the outburst, her eyes burning and teeth grit tight. " _Opal_..." she growled, smoke rising from the corners of her eyes.

They were all waiting.

And waiting, as if something were to happen to Opal. Steven, even through the tears clouding his eyes, wondered for what. Ultimately nothing happened after ten long, tense seconds; Opal stood there, her body trembling, shoulders rising and falling with every heaving breath. Tears still trickled down her cheeks, and her eyes seemed to be staring holes at the Lion locking eyes with her.

The black tendrils of smoke quickly dissipated as recognition crossed Ruby's features, and in a low, haunting voice she said to her leader, "You guys... you _agree_ on that?" Her voice turned to one of immense disgust. "You actually _agree_ with what you just said?"

It was when she heard those words, that Opal snapped back to reality. She blinked several times, batting away tears, and looked down at two of her hands, horror stricken, and then past them at the boy cowering beneath her. Steven was huddled against the door, hugging his knees to his chest and sniffling. When Opal met his gaze, he flinched and looked away, a sob escaping his lips.

"Opal," Sapphire began, but it was too late.

Heartbreak flashed across Opal's features, and with an utterance of the boy's name she began to slowly reach towards him. And just as she did, her entire form lit up in a bright light. Ruby and Sapphire both gasped, while Steven's still-wet eyes locked on the spectacle before him.

"Opal?" he squeaked. If he never saw this phenomenon before, he would have thought Opal was about to poof under the sheer heartbreak she felt upon realizing what she'd done.

What happened instead was much worse.

The mass of light suddenly erupted into color, and from that blast, two figures tumbled to the ground.

" _What_?" Steven squeaked.

"Oh no..." Ruby clapped a hand over her eyes.

One of them was a pudgy girl with lavender skin, at least a head taller than any of the three shortest Gems yet appearance-wise she looked younger than Ruby or Sapphire. Her hair was wild and pale, like Opal's if she didn't tie it back. Her similarities with Steven's guardian didn't end there, as she shared the same plump lips that Opal had, and the thickness of her form at that. Where one of Opal's two gems lied, on her chest, was now a purple Quartz-stone peeking out from behind her tank top.

Tiredness cut across her features, but that didn't stop her when she saw Steven standing a few feet away, his face still ruddy and wet, snot dripping down, and absolute confusion on his face. "S-Steven," she began.

"Who are you?!" he cried, Sapphire and Ruby both instinctively flinching. "Wh-Where's Opal!?"

To his question, the new girl, and the other three Crystal Gems, dragged their gaze over to the second figure to come out of Opal - a tall woman with very skinny limbs, a pointed nose, and the profile of a dancer of some kind. She was facing away from the group, hugging the sword and scabbard of Rose Quartz with all her might.

It was Sapphire who ventured to speak first. "Pearl-"

"Don't." The woman spoke sharply. "Please... don't. I can't... I..." She bowed her head, the pearl on her forehead going _clink_ against the sword's pommel.

Steven couldn't even muster the energy to speak. He just sat there, silent, dumbfounded, and thinking his entire world was coming to an end.

And then Greg burst through the door seconds later. "Who wants to go on a road trip?!" Clutched in his hand was a brochure to the state of Keystone. But taking one look at the scene before him, the five shocked, shaking Gems all ogling him with blank expressions, Greg lowered his hand and his enthusiasm.

"Er... is this a bad time?"

* * *

**Don't worry, this will be a two-parter. Next will be my version of 'Keystone Motel', so stay tuned if you're interested.**

**I hope I was able to stick to the spirit of the original story. My biggest worry was keeping Opal in character in the midst of her breakdown, I tried to make it clear that she was battling with herself throughout the scene.**

**What I though was so interesting about this setup was how both Amethyst and Pearl felt like they were given worth by Rose Quartz, so this feelings of specialness that Opal feels regarding Rose is kinda amplified being a fusion.**

**As for the Pink Diamond grave, in this AU I like to think that Rose laid down the scabbard of her sword upon the Diamond she was forced to shatter, as a sign of respect.**

**Hope you all enjoyed. Please do leave a review telling me what you think, what worked and didn't work, etc.**


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